RJ TASTING NOTE ‘The best champagne from this fabulous vintage released so far. A Classic Belle Epoque but at the same time even more elegant than usual with a lovely serious flowery bouquet of orange blossom, magnolia and lilies of the valley as key notes in the most perfect of perfumes. The taste is somewhat more acidic than usual where Chardonnay from Avize and Cramant shines bright and clear for the moment with a discreet creamy and yet chalky and powdery emotion that embraces the crispy freshness. Together with the legends of 1964, 1985 and perhaps 1996 the best Belle Epoque ever created. Buy every bottle you can get!’ RJ points 95(97)

#TheChampagneSommelier TASTING NOTE ‘Belle Epoque has become a great success everywhere, and more people than me has fallen for the flower-bedecked bottle by Emile Gallé. It is from the old vines at Bourrons Leroy and Bourrons du Midi in the heart of Cramant that Belle Epoque’s fantastic elegance is derived. Light and shimmeringly lovely with pearl necklace mousse. A stingy aroma initially that slowly opens up in a creamy style that is reminiscent of the finest homemade vanilla ice cream. The core of the flavour is replete with red fruits bathed in floral, creamy Chardonnay from Cramant. A shy spiciness that gives the biscuit aroma that in time becomes the lovely notes of roasted coffee, can be detected in the empty glass long after the last sip slowly runs down the throat. The ’08 is caressing the palate at the moment with a colossal syrupy intensity made up of sweet basic tones that are at the same time lifted by lemon and juiciness. So sensual & so fascinating!’ TheChampagneSommelier points 95(98)

RJ ON THE VINTAGE 2008 The weather gods were in their best mood this year, and the vines remained unusually fresh from the attack and gave a very good harvest- ing. An absolutely gorgeous vintage that has it all! Best vintage since 1996, and unlike the tart 1990s, there are wonderful wines directly with their delicious fruit intensity and match- less balance. All the ones I tasted from the vats are magical, and I have a hard time imagining nothing other than buying everything you see of this vintage. So far the leaders are Diebolt- Vallois eur de Passion ahead of Vouette & Sorbée and Michel Turgy, but many giants will surely win over them.

5 stars out of 5!

RJ ON PERRIER-JOUËT This domain was established in 1811 by Pierre-Nicholas-Marie Perrier-Jouët. The company became famous under its nickname P-J under the leadership of his son Charles. In 1950 Mumm bought a majority shareholding in the company and the domain became part of the Canadian Seagram Group. The domain was owned for a time by Allied Domecq who, as soon as they took over, alarmingly dug up large portions of the domain’s fine old vines at Cramant.

Michel Budin, who led the firm up until the 1980s, was a great admirer of Art Nouveau and opened a Belle Epoque museum in 1990, twenty years after launching the cuvée de prestige of the same name. Nowadays the company is owned by Pernod-Ricard. Jean-Marie Barillere is president at present and Hervé Deschamps is chef du cave. Belle Epoque has become a great success everywhere, and the Americans in particular have fallen for the flower-bedecked bottle.

The domain owns 108 hectares at seven villages, and the other 65 per cent of the grapes are purchased from forty villages. The most important village is Cramant, where the firm owns twenty-nine hectares of the very best slopes. In contrast to other big domains, the heritage has been managed well. The vines are very old and produce fantastic grapes that can dominate an entire cuvée, even if their proportion is small, and the delicate domain-style is very dependent on these Chardonnay grapes.

The vintage wine is a roasted classic, and both the Belle Epoque wines are a great source of joy to the romantic wine lover. The 1985 Belle Epoque Rosé was voted as the foremost rosé of all time at the Millennium Tasting. The aroma of the white 99 is somewhat feeble as yet, but very compact and coherently focused. The fruitiness is impressive and the vintage style reminds one not a little of the 89. The new Belle Époque Blanc de Blancs is exquisitely mellow and caressing with a colossal syrupy intensity made up of sweet basic tones that are at the same time lifted by lemon and juiciness. Sensual and fascinating. A 1998 Belle Epoque magnum was our engagement champagne at Lake Luzern in May 2012.